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The chakra system provides a way of understanding life that incorporates yoga, traditional Indian Ayurvedic medicine, and tantric philosophy. In Sanskrit, chakra is the word for wheel, and each wheel is thought of as a spinning concentration, or vortex, of energy. Traditionally, there are seven chakras arranged vertically from the base of the spine to the top of the head, with each chakra correlating to a specific region of the body, emotional quality, and aspect of spiritual consciousness.

Overall health and well-being is intricately tied to the balance of the chakras, as they are where we receive, assimilate and distribute our life energies. Through external situations or internal habits — such as physical misalignment or destructive mental self concepts — a chakra can become imbalanced, so the goal of ISHTA yoga is to bring all of the chakras into harmony.

In this five day intensive Alan and Katrina will provide an overview of the seven major chakras and talk about how to integrate the chakra system into an individualised yoga practice. Designed to enrich advanced students and teachers, we will delve deeply into the chakras on both a practical and theoretical level to enlighten and create deep and lasting transformation.

Some of the topics included will be:

a look at ISHTA alignment and how balancing the physical body through asana can balance each of the seven chakras

how to attune to the subtle energetic qualities of the chakras through an understanding of the nadi system of the subtle body

the role of each chakra in life and how to identify chakra imbalances so as to correct them

the influence of rajas, tamas, and sattva on each chakra and how to design practices to to bring each chakra in to sattva guna

kriya and visualisation to balance the front and back gates of the chakras

meditation as the master key for balancing all of the chakras

specific chakra balance meditations to target individual imbalances.

Bios:Alan Finger has been teaching yoga for half a century. Among the thousands of students who have benefited from his wisdom and his peerless knowledge are many of today’s top teachers. He is renowned for a style of teaching that is unassuming, giving, and highly effective.

Katrina Repka’s early training in her native Canada was in Astanga Vinyasa, but her primary influence and teacher is Yogiraj Alan Finger. Katrina is now head of ISHTA in Europe and is proud to be the first teacher to offer the ISHTA style in London. In 2009, Alan Finger conferred the title of Yogiraj on Katrina, signifying that she has attained the very highest level of knowledge and competency in the study and practice of ISHTA yoga.

Please note: This workshop will be held at the Cecil Sharp House in London.